A Wolf from away
by anantshuumark
Summary: Help finds its way to Ned Stark as he begins his Rebellion.
1. The boy

278 AL, Bear Island's western coast

This land was even more desolate than what he had imagined. Filled with nothing but trees and bears. As he walked towards the beach he remembered the day when Willifer has told him that he would going to serve at Mormont Keep in Bear Island, the day when all his dreams of being an archmaester, or a grand maester, or just doing something worthwhile had died. One of the brightest acolyte he had been, and here he was serving House Mormont, an old House, yes, but one so poor that Lord Stark paid half his fees.

Still he was sure the pride of Lord Jeor wouldn't be far from that of Lord Lannister. Like a good little Maester he had advised his Lord to sell his Valariyan steel sword at the highest price and invest the gold in Bear Island. An island as big as it shouldn't have as few boat and longships as it did, he had told him. The Bear lord has scoffed at him and called him a Southron fool, he hadn't even told how in the name of Seven has his House got a sword of Valariyan steel.

The less said about Lord Mormont's sister was better. Seven only knew where her daughters came from and he did not like the way she had been eyeing him of late.

He had jumped at the opportunity to survey the western coast just to get away from those Bears and their horrible keep.

His curiosity to read a book has sent him to the ends of the world in this frozen and barren hell and as he looked at the strangely calm waters of Sunset sea he wondered if he should end it all. As he contemplated the fate of his life he saw man lying on the ground not far from him. He hurried towards the man when he realised that the man was infact a boy and was bleeding.

He kneeled beside the boy and checked his pulse and was looking at his wound when the boy grasped his robe and rasped, "Winterfell". He ignored the boy and asked, "Were you out their fishing, is your village nearby". The boy rasped again, "Winterfell", his eyes still closed. Northmen and their Winterfell, he thought. "Were you hit on your head too, this is Bear Island". His eyes opened, as grey as he has ever seen and he said in a soft voice, as if remembering something, "Mormont". "Indeed", he said and looked around for someone to help him carry the boy but found only one strange boat which seemed it has seen better days, many and much better days.

"Who rules Winterfell" the boy asked, his voice cracking. He looked closely at the boy before saying, "Lord Rickard Stark". The boy smiled, a pained and strained one, yet still captivating, before frowning and whispering, "lord" as if confused and then he fainted.

As Maester Lorren of Citadel, born in Cuy and serving at Mormont Keep, half carried and half dragged the strange boy he had found to the nearby village, he could hear wolves howling and just for a moment, as he would later say, he felt as gods themselves were watching him. As it turned out, he may not have been half wrong.


	2. Winter has Come

282 AC, Western Coast of Bear Island

Jorah

"It wasn't long when you were cleaning my chamber pots, and now you have an army at my coast" his father said.

"Still I am told I am too late, is it true, my lord" Rodrik asked and to Jorah he sounded as if he wished with all his heart that it wasn't.

In a surprisingly soft voice, father said, "I am afraid it is true, boy, I got a letter from King's landing and the other lords did as well".

Jorah Mormont had known Rodrik for only sometime, and even than only as the Maester's pet who asked a lot of questions about everything, told tall tales and a had a surprisingly good sword arm, but every time he had seen him there had been a smile in his face, as his father told him the contents of that damned letter from King's landing and the rumours he had heard, there was no smile on his face, only sorrow and tears.

It had started to rain and aunt Maege said," Come Jeor we will talk in the village". Rodrik looked up from the letters that had arrived from Winterfell and wiped his tears on his sleeve before saying, " No I must tell the men". He looked at father and asked, "Do you believe me, Lord Mormont". His father looked at the boy for a long time and then took a glance at many ships that he had brought that, and said, "Does it matter, you have told me the tale, you have shown me the proof, you have shown me the men and the ships, yet it will be worth little if my liege doesn't believe you".

Rodrik simply nodded and said, "Someone once told he is a good man, where is he". His father replied in a solemn voice, " From what little I have seen of him, he seemed a good northern lad, Lord Arryn sent a raven saying he will come through the Bite".

"I thank you, my lord for the information you have provided me and your leave to bring the men to the Island, I will leave some men here and take some to the mainland, I will be going to Winterfell, could you provide me with someone who knows the way" Rodrik said, his voice grim. His father looked at him and he had nodded, he had been to Winterfell a few times and there was no way he was not going to fight that was coming. "Jorah will go with you", father said. Rodrik bowed to his father and looked at him, saying," I would like to leave on the morrow, my lord". He just nodded not trusting himself to say anything. Rodrik bowed and turned towards the sea and started walking towards the ships. At that moment Jorah pitied him and the men he has brought, for if everything he told was true then there will be many screams, tears and blood vows when the men from the Islands were told the fate of their king and his heir.


	3. Down he goes

280 AL, Sunset Sea

Rodrik

"If I jump now, do you think I can swim to land"

"No" said the Captain and wandered off mumbling about 'mad northerners'.

Well it was done now, the ship has sailed, and rather than going to a place his people have been obsessed with for hundreds of years he was going south, and not even to the city where he could have kicked some Manderlys but to the real Andal lands.

He knew what his kin would think of this decision, his mother would have understood but his father and brothers would have cursed at him and called him a fool, and he wouldn't have disagreed.

He was not sure why he was on this damn ship. His whole life has been a lesson on how bad things happen when you go too far from a Heart tree.

Maybe it were his mother's words which were taking him south. "We will see Winterfell only and only when we are deserving of it". He certainly wasn't deserving of Winterfell. He had nothing but a strange boy, and stranger tales for Winterfell. Maybe he was going south in search of something, anything that can be useful for Winterfell.

In his heart he knew those reasons to be false, he was going south not because of his mother but because of his father.

His father who prays for the day he meets the Stark of Winterfell, bends his knee and calls him king. His father who will either die when he tells him that the Stark of Winterfell is no longer a king but a 'lord', or when he tells him that our king is a dragonless Valariyan who is married to his own sister.

He needed to know more before he told his tale and only in south will his questions will be answered, or so the healer-'maester' has told him.

His plan was simple, he would go south, learn as much as he could then travel to Winterfell and reveal himself, he was sure someone in Kiri would call it a 'too simple a plan'.

Well simple plan or no simple plan Rodrik Stark was going to Oldtown in a boat called'Kraken's Cunt' andsince he wanted to live, he was now going to talk to captain about his decision to sail a ship called'Kraken's Cunt'in a sea filled with Ironborn.

A.N:All feedback is appreciated. I would like to take this story long and have dropped many easter eggs. Thank you for reading.


	4. Lannister gold

283 AC, Kingslanding

Rodrik

"There are no Reynes, boy, only ghosts live in Castamere"

He remembered those words, he also remembered the song, that fucking song, it has chilled his very bones. Well, that song was right; Tywin Lannister was something else entirely.

He wondered why it was the end of Reynes that troubled him more than that of the far more powerful Gardeners who were killed by dragons.

Maybe because the dragons were gone and Tywin Lannister was still around and still hell-bent on ending noble houses.

"Let them in" he replied to the knock at the door.

And he was here.

"Welcome Lord Lannister, please sit my lord, Malcolm pour the wine, it's the finest wine I could find my lord"

The lion lord looked even more lion-like from near.

"Where is Lord Stark"

"Forgive me, Ser Kevan, I presume; Lord Eddard is with Lord Robert, I am sure you understand that they need some time to grieve over lost loved ones, this is for you Lord Lannister"

"So, you speak for Lord Stark in the negotiations, what negotiations"

"Why, Ser Kevan the negotiations between House Stark and House Lannister for the former's withdrawal from it's marriage pact with House Baratheon"

"What marriage pact, Lyanna Stark is dead"

"So"

"So, who will Robert marry"

"My lord, I will be blunt, we both know that you want your daughter to wed soon-to-be king, Lord Baratheon and become queen but at the Trident North fought for revenge and to put a Stark queen on the throne, now your son took our revenge from us but the North is fine in settling for a northern daughter with Stark blood as their queen"

Tywin Lannister wasn't happy, Rodrik did not like that an inch, but before he could explain, the Knight brother said,

"Didn't Robert Baratheon love Lyanna Stark, why would he marry some other northern girl who brings nothing to his new dynasty"

"Nothing, Ser Kevan, that girl will bring the Islands where I come from, that girl brings the land from Wall to Neck and perhaps even Riverlands and Vale, and you forget Ser that Robert Baratheon loves another from North and I won't be surprised if he marries the girl his northern friend wants him to marry"

Tywin Lannister looked …………. amused, fucking amused.

"How much do you want"

Here it was. And now it begins.

"1 million gold dragons"

Lord Tywin was not looking amused now, Ser Kevan wasn't happy either.

"Have you lost your mind; you are not getting a copp-

"Lord Tywin would you have let Lord Rickard burn to his death"

That changed the room.

He kept staring at Lord Lannister before he finally spoke.

"No that was ill-done"

"Yet men, honourable nobles, knights stood not far from here and watched as the Lord of the North burnt and his son the heir to the North was strangled, and did nothing, they tell me some even clapped. North has lost a lot in the south; Lord Eddard wants little to do with south but all the money and power it would seem are in south, a northern queen would go long way to do that but money would also help to build a North whose Lord is burnt to death in South, now it seems I have started with too much a sum, how about 700000 gold dragons"

"700000 gold dragons!!!!! Why should we give any money"?

"Because my Lords of Lannister you can, you have the money, and this money comes trade, for the first time in a long time North has ships on its Western shore, more money in North means more trade for Lannisport and Westerlands, trade maybe even of things not found in the Seven kingdoms"

"That is……….

"No Kevan, 400000 gold dragons and Ned Stark will suggest my daughter to Robert"

"Then 400000 gold dragons it is my lord, house Stark will insist on Lady Lannister as our queen, I hope the quality of the gold will do the famed Lannister gold justice"

"You have my word"

After the brothers had left and Rodrik had Lannister's word in writing, he thought all in all it had begun well he had decent gold from Westerlands and Tywin Lannister didn't want to kill every single Stark alive. The hardest one was done but next ones weren't going to be easy.

AN:This is a time leap update; I plan on doing some of these. Next update Rodrik meets Ned. Thanks for reading, all feedback is appreciated.


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